easy tzatziki on a hot spring day

easy tzatziki

• 15 oz yogurt, preferable from Cozy Corner Farms or Greek yogurt
• 1 hot house cucumber or 2 regular cucumbers, leave some of the peel and seed
• 2 T lemon juice, freshly squeezed
• 1 T vinegar
• 1 T fresh dill, chopped
• 2 tsp garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp white pepper, freshly ground (use black if you don't have white. I prefer not to see the black flecks in this creamy white dip)
  

In a medium bowl over a sieve or into cheese cloth, grate half of the cucumber and chop the remaining half. I like this texture but you can either grate or dice all. Squeeze the excess juice from the cucumbers. You can drink this fresh, tasty shot of real juice or discard it. Mix all the ingredients and refrigerate for at least an hour for the flavors to marry. Serve with fresh veggies or toasty pita chips.

super sexy quinoa

Keen what??? Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) is a highly nutritious seed from the Andes region of South America. It shares this photo with goat cheese. Super sexy? Well, sure it is. Quinoa is mysterious, exotic, the new buzz (chia seeds will be next), great for your body, and uncomplicated (to prepare). Don't you want the scoop?

Quinoa has an excellent nutritional profile

• exceptional source of protein – containing all essential 8 amino acids

• high in iron
• magnesium: relaxes muscles and nerves, helps support healthy bones & keeps blood circulating
• B vitamins: have a host of health benefits, check out www.whfoods.com

Quinoa is easy to prepare Rinse the quinoa, in a strainer and gently rub/agitate it, with cold water until the water runs clear. This process removes naturally occurring saponins which can give the grain a bitter taste. In a saucepan, combine quinoa and liquid (1 cup quinoa, 2 cups liquid), cover and bring to a boil. Turn off the heat and keep covered for 15-20 minutes. Remove lid and fluff with a fork.

Just a few ideas for using quinoa

• cook it with seasonings or in broth. Met someone at the wine walk who suggested preparing with pineapple juice and sazon then add pigeon beans

• toss with veggies
• blend or prepare with fruit juice
• add dried fruit, maple syrup or sweet spices
• use it in soups or stews
• makes a great breakfast cereal
• use is as a healthy substitute for rice. Makes a yummy pilaf and compliments a light seafood meal.

date and coconut cookies (vegan, GF optional)

This is a really easy cookie to make. You won't have to wait for butter to come to room temp or pull out the KitchenAid to incorporate all the ingredients. Maybe it is too easy and too tasty but no one has to know but you! When they are just out of the oven the are a tad crispy on the outside and warm and gooey on the inside; they taste like granola bar meets cookie. I enjoyed mine with some steamed soy milk that had a dash of cinnamon and a bit of agave.

I have to share a picture of my nephew after he the tried my cookie. This was the face he made... which was very different from the face he made when I offered him a gumdrop. Maybe I should have put gumdrops in this batch!

Here is the bare bones recipe. Use a bit of creativity, I did with my batch. I like cranberries, pumpkin seeds and some secret spices! some ideas... raisins, chocolate chips, favorite nuts, banana chips, ginger, oats... what do you like in your granola?

Date & Coconut Cookies

• 1/2 C nuts, roasted
• 1/2 C date pieces
• 1 1/2 tsp nutritional yeast
  
• 1/1 C shredded coconut (I prefer unsweetened)
• 2 C unbleached flour of your choice ( I used whole wheat pastry flour)
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 C maple syrup
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/2 C oil, canola or vegetable

preheat the oven to 335 degrees. Chop the nuts and dates in a food processor with a few pulses. Add this nut & date mix to a larger mixing bowl with the yeast, coconut, flour, baking powder, and salt; mix well.

In a small bowl combine the maple syrup, vanilla, and oil. Stir the wet and dry mixes together and spoon onto a greased or lined cookie sheet. Bake for about 20-25 minutes.

cool on a rack and enjoy!

lunch delivery on hold

for 3 weeks! I am a bit behind the times and wish I had shared this earlier... I will be at the fabulous and funky Firefly gift shop on Penn Avenue this Wednesday for the wine walk. I am unsure if tickets are still available but suggest you click through the link on the "wine walk" for further details. I did this with a friends in the fall and had so much fun..

As a tease, here is what I will be sharing with some new folks on Penn:

Quinoa Caviar
organic quinoa, eggplant, onion, garlic, herbs and lemon juice

savory goat cheese balls
herbs from my garden and a citrus zest are in this goat cheese mix that is rolled in nuts

tzatziki
made with local yogurt (cozy corner) and served with fresh veggies

gardening notes: april

This was a long weekend with loads of man & women hours put in outdoors. It was perfect weather. The temps did not get over 60 degrees so it was ideal for doing grunt work without fear of heat stroke. This is the first time I have had so much time to prepare for planting. For the past two years, I scurry around after our vacation, mid-May, getting things into the ground as the weather has already warmed.

This weekend we filled the new garden area with soil, put a tiny wall in that low area, tilled one last time, raked dirt, and framed out my beds. This is exhausting work. Last year I did rows and this time around ... well, we shall see how this turns out.

I am by no means an experienced vegetable gardener. I had to prove myself with a teeny, tiny bed in 2008. It was about 8' x 8'. Dan said if I could master that area he would consider tilling a larger space. I planted tomatoes, arugula, carrots, chard, watermelon, and peppers to name a few.



Dan was surprised. I was hooked.

So, today my beds are ready. I started more seeds and plan on planting the same seeds direct, just in case. Funny thing (to me anyway) is last year's garden was really my first go at such a large space (15' x 20') and everything came in beautifully. I planted right into the soil with some work (tilling and peat moss). I used a plastic cover to help keep weeds at bay between plants and newspaper topped with grass clippings to reduce weeds between rows. (note: if you use grass clippings for the first time and catch a whiff of a death thing... chances are it is the clippings...)

This year's main bed is now 20' x 36' and my mini bed... still 8' x 8'. I plan on incorporating veggies in my flower and herb gardens again.

novice gardener's tip of the day: if you must have a garden tool in your hand...wear gardening gloves



ready to be filled!

gardening notes: mid march

I can't seem to locate my gardening journal from 2008 and 2009 so I will start to note in my blog and hope I never forget my password!

During the first week in March, I tried something new... I started seeds using organic seed starting soil and compostable containers:

• tollies peppers
• ancho chillies
• heirloom Chinese giant pepper
• heirloom cayenne long thin pepper
  
• heirloom golden marconi pepper
• heirloom yellow pear tomato
  
• heirloom Thai pink cherry tomato
• organic Valencia onion
• heirloom, organic Scotland leek
• heirloom red creole onion
• organic Ed's red shallots

I clearly labeled my little gems, kept them moist and in the sun. To easily maintain the moisture level, I put my seed containers in the lidded salad containers from Giant (the 16 oz organic salad greens plastic container)....thought this was pretty genius instead of using trays.

It was exciting to see the little buds emerge (as if I have anything to do with this little miracle). I tried to start seeds a few years back with no success... probably had something to do with that. There are 5 salad containers full of seeds. Almost all the seeds sprouted with the exception of the peppers. I set those containers aside to try some other seeds when I had a minute. 2 weeks later I found a minute and pulled out the containers only to find peppers sprouting! Guess they just needed to be ignored. They are doing well now.

We are still working our soil and waiting a bit before I get these seeds in the ground. They get to keep me company in the house for just a bit longer. Sometimes I let them outside, on sunny warm days. Wonder if I should play music for them so they can enjoy this nice, quiet time before I put them out in the hot sun, amongst all the bugs and they have to start working and producing?

6 week detox/diet completed

just saying... I made it! One slip up, new exercise habits in place and not missing sugar all that much! I say that with a ripe champagne mango in the kitchen that I am ready to peel and eat after finishing this post.

I have not missed the TastyKakes as much as expected but I have been mad for Haute Chocolate. I stopped in on the last day of the diet to indulge in an iced americano; the baked cinnamon rolls looked divine. So when you are in the area, make an appointment to stop by for a coffee, espresso or their signature hot chocolate (yum iced) and enjoy a treat!

p.s. I lost 9 pounds but bigger than that mastered my cravings and replaced it with better habits!

spaghetti squash, it's what's for dinner & gluten free

There is no meat here! I am down to my last week on this no white diet/detox. It has not been as difficult as expected. Have to admit to a minor breach in my resolve but this lapse lasted a short while and I made it worthwhile!

Even though the days are getting longer, in terms of daylight, I feel time is always running short. Had a recipe I wanted to share last week for baked chicken... another day, I suppose.

For dinner, I roasted the last spaghetti squash from my fall harvest. I was short on time and this worked well with a hands-off dinner prep.

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash in half and seed it. Line a baking/roasting sheet with foil and add 1/4 cup water.
• To add a bit of flavor, coat each half with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Before putting the squash, cut-side down on the roasted pan, tuck in some garlic cloves.
  
• To the finished squash (roasted at 400 degrees for about 1 1/2 hrs) I topped with my tomato sauce. So that protein was covered I made Dan grilled pork chops, seasoned with garlic and oregano. I had fake Italian sausage with my dish.
• Topped with shaved parm it hit the spot with little time over the stove and no wheat products.
  

Health Benefits of Rosemary Oil

check out this link for some interesting facts

Health Benefits Of Rosemary Oil | Natural Essential Oils | Organic Oils

rosemary

Spring is here, some of my seeds have been started and garden planning is in full gear! I found hope and inspiration while enjoying a coffee, waiting for my car repair. Just outside the cafe window I spotted a rosemary bush that has survived a few seasons in our climate. "Hope" and "inspiration," strong word to use for rosemary? Not if you have tried season after season to find a varietal that can survive our temps.

http://www.sclydeweaver.com/home.aspx

I love rosemary. I blend it's essential oils with others and almond oil using it as a moisturizer. It is fabulous for cooking and I may experiment with rosemary in baking this season (when I am off this detox and can eat what I bake). The scent of rosemary also reminds me of my parents and their home cooking. There is another post I'm sharing that you should check out if you are interested in the scoop on rosemary. I also encourage you to check out one of the blogs I follow, http://cloverleafherbs.blogspot.com/
Long and short, I spoke with the store manager about his rosemary tree (okay, it was not that big but it all depends on your perspective). Before she rang him, the barista assured me that he loves talking about his plantings. She was not wrong, the gentleman was gracious with his time and knowledge. He shared that his varietal is a Rosemary Officinalis, Hill Hardy but that the Gorizia type is also hardy for this area. I would love a bush this size...imagine the skewers I could use for kabobs!

The manager wrote this information on the back side of scrap paper, that turns out is a recipe card. I'll share that too!

Blue Cheese Salad Dressing

• 1 cup mayonnaise
  
• 3 T milk
• 2 T white wine or lemon juice
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp dry mustard
• 4 oz blue cheese
  

put all ingredients in a blemder but withhold half of the cheese to crumble into the mixure. Makes 1 1/2 cups

a little something sweet with no added sugar

I have made many posts since birthday dinner at my in-laws...but only in my head. This "no white detox" is going well but pushing me to be a little creative and prepare food in advance because finding time to cook when I'm home at 7 is not easy.


After a long day outside, clearing garden beds, finding a possum in our barn and wrestling with our raspberry bushes I was ready to kickback and enjoy the sunset. Last night I made a veggie curry with organic short grain brown rice. I had dessert on my mind while preparing dinner. Costco has champagne mangoes and mine are ripening slowly. I can't add sugar and the naturally sweet coconut and mango was so yum, sweet and creamy.


coconut creamed mango dessert

3 tablespoons of organic coconut milk

1/4 cup of organic sweet brown rice

1/8 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup chopped mango, chilled



mix all but the mango and gently warm. top with mango and enjoy!!

a dash of cinnamon might be nice

broccoli soup but what's for dessert?

We are planning to visit Dan's family tomorrow night to celebrate a birthday. I got wind of the menu: wiener schnitzel (dan's father makes a beautiful schnitzel), peas, scalloped potatoes, boy's salad (a strawberry and banana jello mold with a layer of sweetened sour cream), and an eclair cake. I am sure there will be freshly baked bread too. So, based on this detox program I can eat the peas... Plan #1 remove my contacts for dinner Plan #2 take food

In preparation for tomorrow, just baked off one of the last spaghetti squash from my garden. I cut the squash in half and before putting it cut side down on the baking tray added garlic cloves, a splash of olive oil, and a dash of oregano. I also steamed some french beans and made a batch of broccoli soup.

The broccoli soup was simple and is quite tasty. I caramelized onions, added pressed garlic then broccoli pieces and broth. After about 15 minutes on medium heat, I used an immersion blender to smooth the soup. A few last additions included: quinoa, a splash of unsweetened soy milk, salt, white pepper and grated Parmesan cheese.

Lastly, I prepared a baked portabella and eggplant parmesan. Alton Brown shared a neat trick to substitute eggplant for pasta, like a fettuccine. He thinly slice the eggplant lengthwise, added a tad bit of salt, placed on a paper towel in a sieve and let it loose it's water while in the fridge. Presto, a healthy non-pasta. Anyway, I grilled some portabella (that was coated in pressed garlic), put it in a baking pan, topped it with ricotta cheese (mixed with minced garlic, oregano and mozzarella), the eggplant shreds, sauce, and finally a mix of mozzarella and smoked mozzarella.